History of the Rocky Mountain Slam (RMS)
In the early 2000’s Phil Lowry, Leland Barker, Roch Horton, Hans-Deiter Weisshaar and others had the idea that an additional “Slam” series of races, in addition to the Grand Slam and the Last Great Race, would be a cool thing. At that point, race series were becoming all the rage, but none really focused on the few races that occurred in the Mountain West. So, the idea of a Rocky Mountain Slam (RMS) was born, which would consist of Hardrock, Leadville, Wasatch, and the Bear.
In 2003 the Bighorn 100 was added as one of the potential races that could count toward the Slam. Bighorn was chosen due to the feeling that it was of a similar class to the others and the imposition of lotteries at Leadville and Wasatch. The RMS required that the runners complete two races (Hardrock and The Bear) and then choose 2 more from Bighorn, Leadville, and Wasatch.
The RMS enjoyed seeing as many as 8 finishers a year until 2015 when popularity soared for Hardrock and Leadville. After 2014, there were only 1-2 finishers a year due to the difficulty of getting into Hardrock.
In 2019, Ouray 100 was substituted for Hardrock since Hardrock wasn’t held that year.
In 2020, the RMS was not held due to COVID-19
In 2022, the RMS V2.0 was announced
In 2024, Scout Mountain 100 was added
Rocky Mountain Slam V2.0
Given the difficulty in obtaining entrance into the original races has become more difficult we have decided to make a few adjustments to the series. An example of this was the 2023 Hardrock 100 Run, the odds of a Male runner to get in on their first try were 0.4% chance and for a female runner the odds were 0.5%. In 2022, we the Bear 100 race committee opted to discontinue the informal series, but upon reflection and feedback from runners we realized that there is continued interest. As such, we plan to continue it in a new format.
We are happy to announce that runners can now choose from the following list of races with the requirement of completing at least 4 total races with the only mandatory race being the Bear 100 since it is the final race of the series.
Scout Mountain 100 (optional) ** New for 2024
Bighorn 100 (optional)
Hardrock 100 (now optional)
Leadville 100 (optional)
Wasatch Front 100 (optional)
Ouray 100 (optional)
Wyoming Range 100 (optional)
The Bear 100 (mandatory)
We hope that since Hardrock, Leadville and Wasatch all require lotteries, the additional races allow more to experience the Rocky Mountain Slam in all its painful glory. We would like to include EVERY 100 mile race in the Rockies but there are just so many that it dilutes the value of this award. We will not be adding additional races unless we remove one from the series. We now have 2 options for every month from June to September. As it is difficult to compare the races to each other there won’t be a (formal) overall time record kept. There will be an informal summation of a runner's fastest 4 runs (including The Bear). Make sure to sign up early for the races and once you are accepted, enter the RMS series.
To cover the costs of organizing the series and to provide a memorable award for finishing the series, we now require the registration of a runner who intends to compete in the series. We hope that many can experience this exciting but difficult series.
** Update Jan 2024 **
We are aware of the challenges the Wyoming Range 100 is having with obtaining their permit for 2024. The reason is the wolverine is needing additional protection and the Forest Service may not provide a permit. We are considering alternative options for 2024. Ultrasignup for WR100
Reach out to bear100info@gmail.com if you are in the group who is affected by this and can't complete the RMS in 2024 because you were planning on running the Wyoming Range 100.
Event's current local time: 12:38 PM MT
